New detection methods of growth hormone and growth factors

Human growth hormone (GH), but also GH related growth factors like the insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) are known to be abused in sports. Although the scientific evidence supporting a distinct effect of GH on performance in healthy trained subjects is limited, it has been repeatedly found with athletes or trainers, and the recent introduction of a first test to detect GH doping has led to a number of positive cases. Currently, there is no test for the detection of IGF-1 introduced worldwide, but confiscation of the drug from sports teams can be taken as indirect evidence for its abuse. The major biochemical difficulty for the detection of GH is that the recombinant form is identical in physicochemical properties to the endogenous GH secreted by the pituitary gland. Furthermore, the very short half-life of GH in circulation inherently shortens the window of opportunity where the drug can be detected. Two strategies have been followed for more than a decade to develop a test to detect the application of recombinant GH: the marker approach, which is based on the elevation of GH-dependent markers above the level seen under physiological conditions evoked by administration of recombinant GH, and the isoform approach, which is based on a change in the pattern of GH isoforms in circulation following the injection of recombinant GH.